Can anyone tell me what kind of fungus this is? And yes it is a fungus and not a faded fiberglass pole or... Something else. It was soft and a bit slimy to the touch.
ETA: Emerging consensus that this is some type of stinkhorn, which are part of the family Phallaceae. Yes, an entire family of fungi with such phallic appearances that they named them all after it. Based on color and location, best guess is Mutinus ravenelii, which is the only stinkhorn variety with that color typically found in North America. But there are hundreds of members of the family, so who knows. Thanks everyone for helping!
